In Tribute to Garrett Scott

Many of those who read this blog may already know this, but on March 2 independent documentary filmmaker Garrett Scott passed away at the age of 37. I never knew Scott, but as an admirer of his two films in collaboration with Ian Olds, Occupation: Dreamland and Cul de Sac: A Suburban War Story, I can rightfully say that his is a presence and voice that will be sorely missed in American filmmaking. Occupation grabbed my attention immediately upon seeing it, standing out among the glut of Iraq War documentaries as a record of the very complicated feelings of the soldiers fighting and dying over there. But it was discovering Cul de Sac that made me a true believer. As an investigation into the economic and social circumstances behind one of the most sensational news stories of the past decade -- Shawn Nelson's stolen military tank joyride through San Diego -- the film illuminates the social disenfrachisement left ignored by the mainstream press. This is documentary filmmaking at its best -- the loss of Scott is going to make it significantly less vibrant.